Explore the wonders of the Earth. In this site, you will find some information about hiking trails, some of the natural wonders in the places we explored, some itineraries of our travels, some road trip information, some health and fitness tips to enjoy the outdoors, and more of the simple joys from our natural world. Life, like hiking, has lots of ups and down, rugged and steep terrains, switchbacks, and beautiful scenic turns.- Betchai

Friday, April 30, 2010

Trees at Fun Friday: The Torrey Pine

Torrey Pine in Fog

It is Fun Friday again in our group, Blogging for Fun, hosted by Melissa. For 8 weeks, we will be featuring trees, thus the title, "Trees at Fun Friday".

Torrey Pines Lining the Trail

Inside my favorite nature park to hike in San Diego, are the rarest pines in the United States, the Torrey Pines. This rare pine grows naturally in the wild only in two places: at Torrey Pines State Reserve in San Diego, California,

Stunted Torrey Pines growing in poor sands on top of sandstone cliffs

and in a single grove at Santa Rosa Island of Channel Islands National Park, off the coast of Santa Barbara, CA. The Torrey Pines that grow along the exposed western portion of the reserve are growing in poor sand, these trees are exposed to very strong winds and the scorching sun. Probably, because of its exposure to harsh elements, some of the Torrey Pines show an aberrant growth referred to as gorilla's nest or witch's broom.

An aberrant growth ( gorilla's nest) on top of Torrey Pine

(found this tree at Razor Point, at the exposed western slope of the Reserve)

The cause of this unusually very bushy growth within the tree is unknown, possibly due to a genetic disturbance. The beauty of Torrey Pines lies in its character, in its survival amidst the nutrient clad sands, surviving drought ( after-all, San Diego is in a semi-arid environment), whipped by strong chilly ocean winds and cooked by the sun.

Silhouette of a Torrey Pine at Sunset

The Torrey Pines State Reserve was established to preserve these rare pines. The Torrey Pines Golf Course, host of the 2008 US Open Golf Championship, which is located right next to Torrey Pines State Reserve is named after this rare pine trees.